Question:
From Indiana, USA:
I have recently been diagnosed with diabetes, and feel I am
still in a fog on what I should be doing to live with it.
Answer:
Anyone facing a diagnosis as serious as diabetes is bound to be knocked back for
a while. In fact, failure to feel like you do is often a sign of not taking the
news seriously enough. However, as you will also be discovering, many of your
preconceptions about diabetes will already have been proved wrong and I am sure
you are aware that the outlook for patients getting diabetes today is
considerably better than it was 10-20 years ago.
To answer your question directly, perhaps the best way of learning to cope is to
learn as much as possible about the way your body reacts to different situations
i.e., measure plenty blood sugars and ask lots of questions. Join your local
Diabetes Association and read the material they produce.
I never cease to be amazed how quickly patients and families get to grips with
all the minutiae of diabetes and, in no time at all, they are teaching me.
KJR
Original posting 31 Dec 96